Vehicle cleaning systems are well known and include both stationary and moving cleaning systems. In a typical stationary vehicle cleaning system the vehicle remains stationary, and a single cleaning station is equipped with cleaning liquids which are sprayed onto and washed off a vehicle by a single cleaning apparatus. In a typical moving cleaning system, the vehicle is pulled or is diven through different cleaning stations to achieve the same results as the stationary cleaning systems.
Examples of various stationary vehicle cleaning systems include: U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,134,735 and 6,325,863 to Zamensky et al., which are directed to having a plurality of rotating dispensing wands attached to a rotating arm that moves around a stationary vehicle. To determine the end of the vehicle (such that the arm is able to rotate about the vehicle), sensors are positioned about the arm to “sense” or determine the front and rear end of the vehicle; U.S. Pat. No. 5,255,695 to Downey also discloses another rotatable and movable vehicle cleaning arm that includes sensors to determine the length of the vehicle; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,485 to Bailey et al. discloses a vehicle wash system that employs a dispensing arm suspended from a linear trolley that incorporates an arm that moves along the length of the vehicle and rotates around the vehicle to wash all surfaces of the vehicle.
These aforementioned systems are equipped to handle both large and small vehicles. In order to accommodate for all types of vehicles, these systems maintain the spray arms at a predetermined maximum distance away from the center of the cleaning area or a safe distance away from where the surface of the largest vehicle would appear. Unfortunately, the cleaning effect is dramatically reduced when a smaller vehicle enters the system, as the smaller vehicle is cleaned by the liquid spray at a reduced pressure (being that the further away the surface of the vehicle is from the dispensing nozzles, the lower the pressure of the liquid is when it actually makes contact with the vehicle).
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a stationary wash system that provides a more thorough cleaning of a vehicle regardless of the vehicle's size, especially when the vehicle is a truck or includes a trailer. This objective may be accomplished by mapping the surface of the vehicle and moving and rotating the nozzles to maintain a specific distance away from the surface of the vehicle in accordance to the surface or profile of the vehicle.
It is, however, appreciated that the prior art includes the ability to provide a vehicle cleaning system that includes controlling a horizontal spray bar in accordance to the surface of a vehicle in a movable wash system. U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,523 ('523 patent) to Larson et al. discloses a cleaning system that includes a horizontal spray arm that moves horizontally and vertically to closely follow a vehicle's profile as the vehicle is pulled through the vehicle wash system. The spray arm is mounted on one side to a support housing and suspended over the entire vehicle. The mounting of the spray arm to the support housing includes a horizontal pivot connection, such that if the vehicle hits the spray arm, the spray arm will swing away from the vehicle. The cleaning system also includes a plurality of sensors positioned on the spray arm to contour the vehicle. As the vehicle is moved through the cleaning system, the sensors indicate to the controller to move the spray bar to follow the vehicle's profile. In all aspects of the '523 patent the vehicle is constantly moving as it is being pulled through the cleaning system. The controller mechanism, of the '523 patent, must thus be designed to control the movement of the spray arm not only in accordance with the profile of the vehicle, but also to compensate for the continuous movement of the vehicle through the cleaning system.
In addition, the prior art system includes a switch on top of the entrance to the system which, when activated, indicates to the system that a tall van or truck entered the system. When a truck enters the system, the spray bar is automatically raised 80 inches, such that the arm has enough height to clear the trailer. Consequently, the system provided in the '523 patent does not adequately profile and thus clean the front of the truck or tall van. The present system has the ability to adequately clean the front end of any vehicle, especially trucks, and at an optimal distance, which is lacking in the '523 patent.
There is thus a need to provide a stationary cleaning system that provides significant improved profiling of the front end of vehicles, especially trucks that include a grill, hood, windshield, and smoke stack. The improved stationary cleaning system should have the ability to clean between a cab and trailer; between trailers; and between a car and a trailer. Such an improved stationary cleaning system should also include unique safety features to protect the spray bars in case the vehicle moves during the washing cycle.